Wednesday, June 20, 2012

Pearl Jam's former financial manager charged with stealing from the band - The Guardian

A former member of Pearl Jam's management team has been charged with stealing $380,000 (£242,000) from the band.

Rickey Charles Goodrich was chief financial officer with Curtis Inc, the band's management company, when he is alleged to have taken money from the band's accounts. Prosecutors say he committed the theft beween 2006 and September 2010, when he was fired. He had begun working for Pearl Jam in 2005 and joined Curtis Inc the following year.

Goodrich has been charged with 33 counts of theft, and is expected to enter a plea on 28 June at his hearing at Seattle's King County Superior Court. Prosecutors say he transferred money from company accounts to pay debts he and his wife had accrued. He is also alleged to have used company credit cards to pay for personal items, including family holidays and wine.

The charging documents claim that hired investigators found Goodrich had claimed to have paid thousands of dollars to band-members and crew that remained unaccounted for. The band's manager had reviewed areas of their cash flow after becoming concerned by Goodrich's management of their money in late 2009.

According to the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, police claim the thefts cost the management company $556,000 (£354,000), including investigative expenses. Kelly Curtis of Curtis Management said, "We are deeply saddened by this situation," but added that he is "looking forward to a resolution".

Pearl Jam are due to headline the Isle of Wight festival this Saturday.

Some of Julian Assange's most prominent supporters stand to lose up to £240,000 in bail money, provided to secure the WikiLeaks founder's freedom when he first faced extradition proceedings.

A leading criminal lawyer said that following Assange's decision to seek asylum in the Ecuadorean embassy in London and breach the terms of his bail, they would have to persuade the courts why they should not forfeit their money and prove they had done all they could to prevent him breaking the court order.

A group of celebrities and activists, including the socialite Jemima Khan, film director Ken Loach and publisher Felix Dennis, posted cash security of £200,000 to Westminster magistrates court with a further £40,000 as promised sureties when Assange was freed in December 2010.

"The people who have posted the money would have to go to court and plead their case as to why they shouldn't lose their money," said Oliver Lewis, partner at solicitors Powell Spencer and Partners. "There would have to be a pretty good reason why the money shouldn't be forfeited. Usually the court says 'thank you very much, you have lost your money'. You have to show that you have been vigilant and put every effort in to stop it happening."

Vaughan Smith, the founder of the Frontline Club for journalists, hosted Assange at his Norfolk home for over a year and stands to lose £20,000.

"It is not clear to me whether I have a liability but either way I am concerned," he said. "I do believe Julian genuinely feels he will be sent to America – and of course I think the money is important because it relates to the welfare of my wife and children, but they don't feel they are at risk of being sent to America.

"I remain a supporter and it is important we recognise he is a western dissident. There are a lot of people who believe the work he did at WikiLeaks was in the public interest."

Khan confirmed on Twitter that she had also posted bail money for Assange. "I had expected him to face the allegations," she said. "I am as surprised as anyone by this."

Tracy Worcester, the model and actress turned environmental campaigner, confirmed that she had put up a surety for Assange but said she had not yet been able to speak to his legal team about the latest developments and declined to comment further.

The human rights activist Bianca Jagger denied reports that she had contributed to the bail money, tweeting: "I would like to set the record straight. I didn't post bail for Julian Assange."

A spokeswoman for the courts service said it was normal for breaches of bail to be considered at the court that set the bail conditions in the first place, in this case Westminster magistrates court.

"What happens to the money will be decided by a judge if and when he is brought back before the court," she said. "It depends on what the police say about what they think a person has done and what should follow on from that."

No wonder experts say parents should introduce their children to basic financial matters at an earlier age than ever. "Teaching children the value of money from an early age provides a good foundation for their future spending habits, and sends positive messages about managing finances and living within one's means," explains Simon Walsh, spokesman for Family Lives. "Their observations of how you spend, save, budget and donate to charities can shape early views about money management."

Get them involved in making their own financial decisions too. "My eight-year-old son Henry knows that if he wants something, he must select a few items he no longer wants, photograph them, write a description and put them on eBay," says Rebecca Gunn, 39, who lives in Bedfordshire.

Like many parents, Gunn also uses pocket money to help her son to understand its value. "It stops him walking into a shop wanting everything he sees. It makes him think about what he wants and he enjoys weighing up the pros and cons of things as the week goes on."

Research from Equifax reveals a growing emphasis on encouraging children to "earn" their pocket money through basic chores such as washing up and tidying up. The average amount children receive, according to another survey by Halifax, is £4.57 for 8-11 year-olds and £7.02 for 12-15 year olds. "Each of my two children, aged five and seven, has a special job around the house once a week," says Sarah Brown, a 40-year-old mother from Kent. "It means they realise they need to contribute something to earn money."

A vital component of the pocket money concept, she believes, is that kids discover their own spending power. "This is where, as a parent, you have to get the balance right between parental advice and allowing your child to make their own decisions – and therefore mistakes. It's definitely given my children an understanding, which did not exist a year ago, of how important it is to know how much things cost," says Brown. "Even simple things like checking the price tag on the box to see if it's affordable, is not something you see many kids do. Perhaps most satisfying of all is that my eldest, has opened a bank account and is already beginning to grasp the concept of interest."

When your children hit their teens, consider swapping pocket money for a monthly allowance, but the same principles apply, advises Pritee Chohan, Money for Life Programme volunteer and a branch manager for Halifax. "Sit them down to explain the differences between the savings accounts on offer and help them to budget for that holiday with friends or for driving lessons. By the time they leave home, they should have all the money savvy they need to make a great start in life."

NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- U.S. stocks closed mixed Wednesday after the Federal Reserve extended one of its stimulus programs but stopped short of announcing a more aggressive bond buying policy.

The Dow Jones industrial average (INDU) dropped 13 points, or 0.1%, to end at 12,824. The S&P 500 (SPX) lost 2 points, or 0.2%, to 1,355. The Nasdaq (COMP) added 1 point, or less than 0.1%, to 2,930.

The Fed announced plans to extend Operation Twist, the policy of swapping short-term Treasuries in the central bank's portfolio for bonds with a longer duration. The program, which was due to expire June 30, will continue through the end of 2012. The Fed expects to buy $267 billion worth of bonds.

The announcement comes as economic conditions in the United States have deteriorated, with slower than expected job creation weighing on consumer sentiment. In addition, the debt crisis in Europe continues to pose a significant threat to the global economy.

At a press conference Wednesday afternoon, Fed chairman Ben Bernanke said extending Operation Twist is a "substantive step" and that the central bank is "prepared to do what is necessary to provide support for the economy."

Meanwhile, the Fed lowered its outlook for economic growth this year and raised its forecast for the unemployment rate.

The cloudy economic outlook had raised speculation that the Fed would take more aggressive steps to stimulate growth, such as intervening directly in the bond market. But Wednesday's move falls short of the full-blown quantitative easing that many investors have been calling for.

"Bernanke didn't give the market what it wanted, but he gave it what it expected," said Quincy Krosby, market strategist with Prudential Financial in Newark, N.J.

The extension of Operation Twist was widely anticipated and telegraphed by Fed officials. But Bernanke disappointed traders who were hoping for a clear hint that more stimulus was imminent, said Krosby.

"Traders don't want to hear maybe," she said. "And this is a trader's market."

U.S. stocks finished up about 1% Tuesday, as investors signaled hope for some Fed action.

CNNMoney's Fear & Greed index shows investors becoming less fearful, although the reading remains in "fear" territory. Just last week, the index had been in "extreme fear" territory.

The Fed: The Fed lowered its forecast for 2012 economic growth to a range of 1.9% to 2.4%. In April, the growth outlook was between 2.4% and 2.9%.

At the same time, the Fed raised its forecast for the unemployment rate, predicting it will end the year between 8% and its current 8.2%.

The Fed's Open Market Committee also held interest rates near zero, where they've been since December 2008, in an attempt to boost the economy. The FOMC has said it plans to keep rates "exceptionally low" through late 2014.

In a classic "sell on the news" move, shares of The National Bank of Greece (NBG) slid 9% and Global X FTSE Greece 20 ETF (GREK) lost more than 1%. Both stocks were up sharply over the past five days.

Greece has been a thorn in investors' sides for months, with fears about the country leaving the eurozone and the ripple effect on other sovereign nations sending global financial markets on a roller coaster ride.

Economy:Oil prices slid after the U.S. Energy Information Administration's weekly crude inventories report showed an increase of 2.9 million barrels in the week ended June 16. Economists had expected a decline.

Oil for July delivery slid $2.97 to $81.06 a barrel.

Companies: Shares of Dow component Procter & Gamble (PG, Fortune 500) continued to fall as the maker of consumer products cut its sales and earnings guidance for the current quarter and the full year.